Friday, August 29, 2014

Thanks to the kind contribution of Ron (last name withheld), here we have the full Rolling Stone article from September, 1985 - direct from the video shoot of Out of Mind Out of Sight, in the Crystal Ballroom.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Please feel free to send any amendments to me at wjames@ccsaust.com. The original photo of the article is attached, but the watermarks obscure some sentences, and my eyes aren't what they used to be...

Article follows -

It's not surprising that no-one's heard of the Models, this Melbourne band is so fiercely independent that they're even a mystery to native Australians. "Most people can't quite suss out what's going on" quips keyboardist Andrew Duffield.

Formed in 1978, the Models have seen two line-up changes, a near fatal split in 1979, and have achieved cult status in their home town largely through the sheer innovative, quirky quality of their work and fiercely fought for independence, which has kept a cackle of major labels at arm's length. They've gigged extensively - "up to five nights a week for two or three years" - supporting Dr Feelgood, the Stranglers, and the Police, they've produced and financed two singles, an album and a six track EP, yet as far as the rest of the world is concerned, the Models haven't even happened.

I caught them quite by accident several weeks ago, having staggered into Dingwalls far too early one night to see Doll by Doll. As soon as they launched themselves into a superb version of "Telstar" it was pretty obvious that they were new only to the London scene.

Driving rhythms, fine pop melodies, distinctively powerful electronics and an edgy guitar may be familiar enough ingredients but in a unique shake-up in the highly original material and vocals to match, marked the Models out from the chaff. (NB: suspect line after 'ingredients' not quite correct). Songs like "Pate Pedestrians", 'Man O' Action" and "Subterranean Fist Truck" whizzed over my head. I was hooked. Some elementary detective work and a couple of weeks later I managed to corner the elusive buggers locked away in the wilds of Little Chalfont just two days before they were due to leave the Farmyard Studios where A&M had installed them to cut an album.

Bassist Mark Ferrie had disappeared to London, leaving Sean Kelly, Andrew Duffield and Kiwi drummer Buster Stiggs to take turns at the inquisition. After five weeks concentrated work, the Models were smashed.

"We think it's electronic music with soul" opined Andrew.

<unidentified line> Get Down electronic music.(NB: can anyone help identify this line?)

"We can border between being a really good band or an absolutely dire band, which I think is a winning combination... in Australia, we've always managed to maintain some charisma by our inconsistency".

Smashed but serious, the Models simply refuse to be controlled. "We were really careful about the way we negotiated with A&M", he continued. "The band is into the idea of working for itself and having its ideas translated properly by the record company".

Perversely, doing it their own way for so long has meant some difficulties in re-adjusting to the luxurious excesses afforded by a major (record) company.

"When we recorded the first album", he continued, "we were paying for it before it was picked up by Mushroom Records. And so we had to work live to pay the bills. It meant we were doing live gigs and then going into the studio from midnight to dawn. And, having access to the studio for a non-stop period is slightly unique in that we've all the freedom in the world, and perhaps", he added with a smile, "too much".

That first album, the ridiculously titled "AlphaBravoCharlieDeltaEchoFoxtrotGolf", was felt by the band to be a pretty awful record. It's far from perfect but it demonstrates what a unique force the band can muster. What it fails to deliver, it promises.

"It's ours though, in the sense that we made the balls-ups on it rather than a producer", explained Andrew.

Their cult status in Australia seems to stem from the fact that they don't get played in the national AM stations but reach the large student audience glued to the local FM stations. With many bands releasing independent singles, the Models planned a little higher - for an independent record. (NB: this line may not be correct)

"We thought that'd be a suitably different thing to do", laughed Andrew.

When someone sitting opposite you articulates his thoughts in off-key English between sips of Fosters, it's not hard to forget that he is essentially foreign. A fact which Andrew was well aware of.

"We are sensitive about the fact that we're Australian", he protested. "it's not an unusual thing, particularly when you read about other Australian bands that have attempted to break through. There's a very humble attitude in Australia towards England as far as where its head is at musically. We expected to be really quite intimidated by the place, or at least I did, and I'm not, because I think we can hold our own. It's probably because we've had the opportunity to play a lot more than most local bands here have.

"One of the unusual things in Australia, which I think is an asset, is that we get both American and English music on exactly the same level. So we treat them totally on the same plane and we're able to look a lot more objectively at things that are happening than you can. English music is so categorised and we just can't afford those kind of liberties. We don't like to restrict ourselves anyway, so we try to take the best of both worlds".

It's striking that A&M seem to be treated the Models fragile talent with previous care, bringing them half-way across the world to the best facilities and operatives, a fact viewed by Sean Kelly with healthy disrespect. "Contracts", said Sean, "always have things in them like ...'as we agree to to all this for you, we have the right to tell you where to perform...' and stuff like that, which I find really interesting. Because if A&M put a whole load of money into recording an album they naturally want a group to tour... back it up. And if someone was to say 'Well no that's not what I want to do' they'd say 'ah but look, clause blahblahblah says that you have to do it'. Then it would become good fun because I would just say 'Well I'm not going to. And what can you really do about it?'. And there's nothing they can do".

"I'm not saying that what I would do... that's just what I think of contracts. In fact there's nothing they can do because I care too much about the fact that the songs are recorded. Because in a sense a song's immortal, just like the Psalms of David".

WS FM101.7 and iHeartRadio are excited to announce the inaugural PURE GOLD LIVE concert featuring twelve of the biggest acts of the 70s, 80s and 90s to help celebrate the 90th birthday of Sydney’s historic Hordern Pavilion.

WS FM101.7, Sydney’s No. 1 FM Radio Station, entertain over 700,000 listeners across the Harbour city and surrounds with a mix of Pure Gold hits and engaging talent led by the No. 1 breakfast team of Brendan ‘Jonesy’ Jones and Amanda Keller who will MC the PURE GOLD LIVE concert event at the Hordern Pavilion on Saturday, 25 October, 2014.

PURE GOLD LIVE will be three hours of hits and memories with twelve of Australia’s most well-loved 70s, 80s and 90s hit makers gracing the stage and taking a whole generation back to a time when rock ‘n roll was a way of life and there wasn’t a camera phone in sight. WS FM101.7’s Jonesy and Amanda said they were thrilled to be taking audiences on this rockin’ trip listening to music that they know and love.

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

It's high time this album got listened to by all the James Freud fans out there!

I found this link which contains the LP, remastered to digital some 8-10 years ago. I do notice that the track-names are incorrect, and that they've taken an image off the 80sdreamer website to put the cd together - cute!

Now your mileage may vary, but here is the track-list as I believe it to be -

1. China Crimes (also the name of the LP)
2. Head in Hand3. Receiving me
4. Rooms to Rent
5. Central
6. Over my Head
7. Search and Rescue
8. Suspicious of the Night
9. Automatic Crazy

(you'll see when you open the archive that whoever put it together just guesses the names of the tracks based on the repeated chorus. In most cases, that assumption is correct, but many of these tracks were performed live in 1980 PRIOR to James Freud going to the UK with Gary Numan to record the LP)

According to Inner City Sound (who has live recordings of both gigs - one of which was uploaded here in years past), the track-names are as reported on the set-list.

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Breaking Silence re-released -news direct from Sally Freud

To be released by Sandman Records, and the CD release will be available to international fans.

The CD will include bonus tracks, to be advised. I'd assume iTunes will have the same content.

Sandman Records have a history of releasing great bonus content, including liner notes and as many bonus tracks as they can physically fit on a CD. Sandman also sometimes release 2-CD sets, so maybe we'll see some of the 'China Crimes' unreleased LP - the aborted Gary Numan-produced one? CD releases are typically done as digipack releases.

Sandman Records also release in LP (vinyl) format, so maybe we'll see this content on there as well.

Sandman have only been around since 2013, but in that time they've released a dozen good re-releases including The Numbers and Billy Field, all with bonus tracks.

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

ModelsIt's almost impossible to reconcile that the group who shared their first single with Boys Next Door would go on to become a pop band with a national No.1 single five years later. While Boys Next Door survived their entry into the world of record companies intact, their Suicide Label contemporaries didn't, and the Models was formed in 1978 out of the remnants of Melbourne neo-punk groups Teenage Radio Stars (Sean Kelly and Pierre Voltaire) and JAB (Janis Freidenfelds and Ash Wednesday). After just a few gigs Voltaire was replaced by Carlton musician Mark Ferrie, and when Ash Wednesday left for solo projects, he was replaced by electronic-oriented Andrew Duffield. It's that band which captured a quick and willing following and shared a single with Boys Next Door which was given away at gigs. But the Models weren't happy musically, were not getting on personally, and announced their break-up in November 1979. Word had spread to Vanda and Young (ex-Easybeats, songwriters, producers of AC/DC) who invited the group to record some demos in their studios. It was enough to encourage the Models to reform, and over 1200 fans turned up for the comeback performance at the Crystal Ballroom. After a national tour of Australia with the Ramones and Midnight Oil, a bidding war broke out amongst record companies for the Models' signature. To guarantee creative control they chose to finance the sessions for their first album themselves, before signing to Mushroom. The band refused to let the company release a single from the pioneering electropop 'AlphaBravoCharlieDeltaEchoFoxtrotGolf'. During a February 1981 tour with Police the President of A&M records saw the band and offered them an international record contract. Replacing drummer Janis Freidenfelds with Buster Siggs they set to work recording demos to send to an English producer. The group was so pleased with the results those demos were released as a mini-album 'Cut Lunch' in July. The English sessions comprised the October album 'Local &/Or General', still casting the Models in that experimental XTC advent guard pop category. During 1982 the band went through line-up changes which slowly but dramatically changed the Models into a completely different and more accessible band. Sean Kelly had brought in his former Teenage Radio Stars pal James Freud, who in the meantime had successfully fronted the group Berlin. Barton Price joined on drums. Duffield quit and re-joined. Revitalized, the Models recorded 'The Pleasure Of Your Company' and its breakthrough single 'I Hear Motion' with producer Nick Launay, putting more emphasis on their rhythm section and the pop accessibility of their songs. When the next couple of singles failed to chart, Sean Kelly for one was convinced that the band was finished and was in the process of rehearsing a new band and a new set of songs when Mushroom informed the Models an American producer, Reggie Lucas was being flown in at great expense to produce the next single. 'Big On Love' gave the band another hit, and probably saved their career. Again. At this stage also, INXS' manager Chris Murphy stepped into the picture. INXS were fans and encouraged him to take the Models on too, Murphy wanted the band to stop mucking around and go for the big hit records. Andrew Duffield thought they were being asked to sell out and said so publicly. He was replaced by Roger Mason, formerly of James Freud's Berlin. By then the band had also added sax player James Valentine. It was this group which recorded 'Out Of Mind Out Of Sight' and its glam rock influenced title single, a number one record in Australia in August 1985. As Murphy wanted, The Models had turned into pop stars. With their single also charting in the US the group flew to London to record another album. 'Models Media' would be their last. There was nothing really wrong with the album, it just didn't take the music anywhere new, and the band which was always fragile internally just imploded. But it was a slow death. 'Models Media' was released in December 1986. In September 1987 they released a version of the Beatles 'Oh Darling', their final single. The band's break-up was not made official until June 1991, following a tour to cover various debts. James Freud went on to a solo career, while Sean Kelly turned up as part of Absent Friends with Wendy Matthews. In November 2000 James and Sean united the Models for a round of live performances.